


What it Means

by siyeonseyelashes



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Adoption, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, BaekYeol - Freeform, ChanBaek - Freeform, Chanyeol and Baekhyun become foster parents, Domestic Boyfriends, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Foster Care, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Lawyer Park Chanyeol, M/M, Past Child Abuse, References to Depression, Self-Worth Issues, Teacher Byun Baekhyun
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-17 12:21:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,683
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29471622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/siyeonseyelashes/pseuds/siyeonseyelashes
Summary: Despite what most people think about teachers, Byun Baekhyun loves his job. He loves getting to dance with tiny children, and he loves coming home to his lawyer boyfriend, Park Chanyeol.What he doesn't love, is finding out that one of his students is being abused.Or: Baekhyun will always go out of his way to keep his students happy; and Chanyeol will always do what he can to keep Baekhyun happy.
Relationships: Byun Baekhyun/Park Chanyeol
Comments: 2
Kudos: 25





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I saw a video about disturbing experiences on YouTube so I guess I should say that this fic is inspired by one of the stories on that video. I don't remember the title of the video and I'm too lazy to go looking for it so oh well.
> 
> ***The tags and rating will change as the story goes so please be aware of those.
> 
> And as always,  
> We know no one by the name of 'honorifics' here, okay? He/She does not exist, nor will they ever.
> 
> Enjoy :))

Baekhyun woke to the annoying vibrations of his phone from his nightstand. He groaned and shoved his pillow over his head, stealing some more of the blanket from the body to his left. He didn’t need it anyway, he was already practically a human space heater.

“Baek, really?” Came a laugh from the other side of the bed.

“Shhhh” Baekhyun whispered. 

Chanyeol chuckled and pulled the pillow away from his grasp, ignoring Baekhyun’s sounds of protest. He smiled down at his grumpy boyfriend. “You gotta get up, love.”

Baekhyun pouted. “No I don’t. Gimme that back.” 

He made grabby hands for the pillow Chanyeol held high above his head but Chanyeol just stuck out his tongue and threw it across the room on the couch. 

“Bitch!” The tiny man hissed.

Chanyeol rolled his eyes. “You’re going to be late, it’s almost half past 7.”

That seemed to do that trick, he smirked. He watched as Baekhyun’s eyes widened to the size of saucers as he finally picked up his buzzing phone and cursed when he saw the time. The next moment he was already heading into the bathroom and running the shower while brushing his teeth.

If this weren’t already an everyday thing, Chanyeol would have been a little worried that his boyfriend would be late to work today. But knowing him, he could safely assume he’d get there mere seconds before his class started.

Letting out a light-hearted sigh, Chanyeol got out of bed and left the room, beelining towards the kitchen so he could make at least some coffee for the two of them to drink before heading out for work. He’d already gotten dressed and ready before Baekhyun woke up and just decided to lay back down until he did. By the time the second cup of coffee finished brewing and was poured into a portable mug, Baekhyun came tumbling out of their bedroom, still slightly disoriented. Chanyeol smiled fondly at him. 

“Here,” he said, pointing to the mug. “I assumed you’d need the extra boost so I added some sugar.”

Baekhyun looked at him as if he were a god and murmured out a thank you before taking a sip, sighing in relief. Chanyeol stepped around the kitchen island so he could wrap a strong arm around his waist. He bent down to kiss Baekhyun’s nose.

“You better hurry and get going.” He uttered, running a hand through the smaller man’s hair in an attempt to make it neater. 

Baekhyun hummed in acknowledgement but simply leaned forward into the large chest that still radiated the warmth he could never get tired of. Chanyeol buried his nose into his hair, smelling the shampoo Baekhyun had just used, and ran a hand down his back comfortingly. They stood there for a solid five minutes before the latter’s phone began buzzing again. 

They both sighed in annoyance and reluctantly parted and pulled on their shoes. 

The rest is just like everyday: Baekhyun heads out the door first, but not without forgetting to plop a chaste kiss on Chanyeol’s lips and making sure he has his teacher ID; and then Chanyeol grabs his suitcase and begins his walk to the law firm he worked at just a block away.

\------///------

“Happy friday, everybody!”

_ “Happy friday, Mr. Byun!!”  _

Baekhyun is pretty sure he’ll never get tired of seeing these smiling faces everyday.

People say that teaching 4th graders is a curse, especially at an arts school, but Baekhyun couldn’t disagree more. Even though he hated getting up early in the mornings, it was all worth it when he got to see his students beaming at him as they waited for their dance class to begin for the day. He knew he was lucky that his students in particular were all well behaved. How they acted in other classes were none of his business.

ANyways.

As the bell rang, Baekhyun sat down at his desk in the corner of the classroom. The room was set up so that half of it was practically a dance studio- with polished wooden floors and walls lined with mirrors- and the other half was the educational aspect, with rows of desks and cubbies for backpacks. Just one of the perks of wealthy arts schools, he guessed. 

He started calling out attendance as the little 9- and 10-year-olds chatted excitedly amongst themselves. When he finished he finalized the attendance and stood up, clapping his hands to get everyone’s attention. He couldn’t help but smile when they almost immediately fell quiet.

“As I told you last class, we won’t be doing any practicing today. For today’s class, we’ll be watching a documentary about a famous dancer and how she worked hard to get to her position and- Eunji?”

Baekhyun cut himself off when he noticed a particular student wasn’t paying attention. The little girl, Eunji, who was usually lively and sitting in the front, was hidden in the back of the class and completely engrossed in whatever she was doing on her phone. Now that Baekhyun thought about it, he hadn’t gotten his usual special greeting from her when he walked in this morning. 

Ever since the beginning of the school year, Baekhyun had felt that he and Eunji had a special bond that went beyond just student and teacher- more like father and daughter. She often hung back after class to get pointers she didn’t need even though they both knew it was just a ruse to be able to hang out for a little longer. And every morning, no matter if she had his class first period or not, Eunji would always come give Baekhyun a hug before class started, followed by their special greeting which consisted of a made-up handshake and silly facial expressions.

How Baekhyun managed to miss that was beyond him, but now he was just concerned when said girl didn’t acknowledge him and kept staring at her phone. 

“Eunji.” He called out louder, this time getting her attention. Her tiny head snapped up, forcing her short black hair out of her face. Her wide eyes whipped around the room for a second before settling on her teacher. 

“Yes, Mr. Byun?” She said in a small voice. Baekhyun’s worry only grew. He was sure this was probably the only thing she’d said so far this morning and it was so unlike her. She was usually cheerful and talkative and always followed the rules. 

“Please put your phone away during class.” He said softly but sternly. “And make sure you’re paying attention.”

The little girl only nodded and stuffed her phone in her back pocket, fiddling with her fingers. 

He’ll have to speak with her after class, Baekhyun thought. There’s obviously something wrong. Sighing, he resumed explaining the agenda for today and started setting up the display board. All the children moved to sit in a little group on the floor in front of the screen, excited because they knew their teacher would never pick boring documentaries.

While he was turning on the presentation, Baekhyun noticed that Eunji was on her phone again, brows furrowed. He made sure the movie was playing correctly before quietly walking around the group of children, making his way to the back. 

He crouched and tapped Eunji’s shoulder, choosing not to say anything when she flinched almost violently. She looked up at him and frowned back down at her phone. 

“I’m sorry, I’ll put it away.” She stammered, hurrying to put her phone back in her pocket. But Baekhyun just stopped her and looked at her with concern. 

“You know you can tell me anything right?” He said gently. It took a few moments for those words to hang in the air between them before Eunji’s face scrunched up and tears started gathering in her eyes. 

Baekhyun didn’t waste another second and softly took her arm, pulling her to her feet, before quietly walking towards the classroom door. He opened it and motioned for Eunji to step out, taking one last glance at the rest of his students before also walking out and closing the door behind him. 

Eunji stood there with her head down, staring at her shiny black shoes as if they were the most fascinating thing in the world. There were still tears in her eyes but they hadn’t fallen yet. Baekhyun placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, prompting her to look up. 

She inhaled sharply, “I-I’m sorry for being in such a bad mood today.”

Baekhyun was quick to shake his head. “It’s okay, hun. Do you want to tell me why?”

Eunji nodded and stepped backward, unzipping her uniform jacket. Baekhyun quickly realized that she only wore a tank top underneath it. It was against dress code, but that didn’t matter right now.

What did matter was the nasty, angry welts covering her arms and back. Some of them looked like they had started and stopped bleeding at some point, small areas crusted in dried blood. Baekhyun felt an unforgiving wave of pure anger come over him. His face must’ve shown his anger because Eunji took one look at him and started crying. 

Baekhyun quickly schooled his expression. He dropped down to one knee and took her tiny hands in his. “No, no, I’m not mad at you. Just- who did this to you, Eunji?”

Eunji sniffed and pressed her lips together. “M-my mom.” 

It was just barely a whisper but he heard it. Before he could say anything she kept talking. 

“I- she- she came home yesterday, I think she was in a bad mood. She got her electric cord a-and beat me for no reason again and- and don’t k-know what to do.”

_ Again!?  _ Baekhyun thought incredulously. “This has happened before?” He asked, trying to keep his voice calm. Eunji nodded and tugged her jack back on just as there were footsteps coming up from behind him. Baekhyun turned, ready to reprimand a student for wandering the halls, but stopped short when he realized it was one of his close friends and colleagues. 

“Hey, Baek,” Minseok said warily, noticing the tears in the little girl’s eyes. He stuffed his hands in his pockets nervously. “...Is everything okay?”

Baekhyun wanted to say yes for the sake of not worrying him but this was far from okay. He shook his head and looked at him pleadingly. “You don’t have a class to teach right now, right? Can you please watch mine while I go talk with the principal? It shouldn’t take too long.”

Minseok frowned but nodded nonetheless. “I mean, yeah. But, can I ask why? What’s wrong?”

“I’ll explain later. Thank you so much, I owe you one.”

Baekhyun was already heading down the hall with the little girl before Minseok could say anything else.

\------///------

It was well after school ended when the mother showed up. 

Baekhyun and Eunji sat in the principal’s office, along with a couple police officers and a worker from CPS. They’d shown up after the two of them explained to the principle what Eunji had explained to Baekhyun. It was clear to all of them that she should no longer be around her mother, so the principle called the police. 

It was only after everything was explained to the police that Eunji’s mother came charging into the building and burst into the room as if she owned the place, demanding her daughter to be handed to her. 

“GIVE HER TO ME!” She screeched, becoming hysterical when the policemen grabbed and cuffed her the moment she started towards Eunji, who was cowering behind Baekhyun. 

“Mrs. Yuk Yeongjun, you are arrested for severe child abuse and child endangerment. You have the right to remain silent-”

“You  _ bitch!”  _ She cut off the policeman, glaring pointedly at her daughter. “You told them these lies didn’t you? You ungrateful waste of space! I hope you-”

“ _ That is enough!” _ Baekhyun shouted. He glowered threateningly at the lady, taking satisfaction at the fear he saw in her eyes. “Speak to her like that again, and you’ll have more than prison to worry about.”

She was silent after that, choosing to simply keep throwing dirty looks at Eunji as she dragged out the school in handcuffs. 

The CPS worker sighed and looked at Baekhyun gratefully, “Thank you, sir. I’ll go ahead and take Ms. Yuk out of your hands now.”

When she moved to approach Eunji, Baekhyun quickly stood in her way. “What do you mean ‘take her out of my hands’? Where are you taking her?”

The worker raised an eyebrow, a strand of her dyed blond hair falling over her eye. She shifted in the tall heels she wore, hands moving to smoothen out her suit. “To a foster home, of course. Ms. Yuk had only been living with her mother. Now that she no longer has an adult to care for her, she’ll be sent to a foster home for the time being until someone is willing to take her in.”

Baekhyun’s eyes widened. She doesn’t have anyone else to take care of her? He looked back and down at the little girl that was still clutching tightly at his dress pants, biting her lip. He stared at her for a few moments before looking back at the woman. “I can take care of her.”

“You can?” She looked almost surprised. “But you have to be-”

“I’m already registered for the foster parenting program. I have been for a few months now.”

The CPS worker cleared her throat and pushed her glasses up her nose. “Is that so?”

Baekhyun nodded. The woman nodded back and took out a piece of paper from the folder she was holding, handing it to him. Baekhyun took a few minutes to read it before looking back up at her, shock evident in his eyes. “I can take her today? Just like that?”

The worker nodded with a kind smile. “All you need to do is sign this paper, and a few others, and you’ll be set. We can help with transferring her belongings to your residence.”

There was a small tug at his pants and Baekhyun shifted his attention back to Eunji. The small smiled on her face relieved him, and he couldn’t help but smile back, ruffling her hair. He sat down and started with all the paperwork, while Eunji sat next to him fiddling with a little charm on her backpack. It took almost an hour to complete everything but nobody complained. Even the principal was willing to stay back after school hours to make sure everything went okay, evidently worried about one of his students’ well-being. 

When everything was finished they all stood and Baekhyun and the worker- who’s name he learned was Seunghee- shook hands. She explained that she’d get some people to help with transferring Eunji’s stuff over the weekend since it was already so late in the day. She gave him a business card before sending Eunji a bright smile and leaving. 

The principal tried to find a way to help as Baekhyun began getting ready to leave with Eunji but Baekhyun reassured him that they’d be fine. 

He headed back to his classroom so he could get his belongings and Eunji could pack up her backpack, and then they were leaving the building. If the little girl was refusing to let go of his hands unless it was absolutely necessary, Baekhyun didn’t say a thing about it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ***Tiny warning: there is quite a lot of cussing in this chapter so please be aware of that. Tanks :)
> 
> Enjoy!

To say Chanyeol was worried was an understatement. At this point he was terrified. 

They hadn’t mentioned it this morning, but both he and Baekhyun knew that they were going to be sleeping at Chanyeol’s house tonight, like they always did on the Saturdays. So he’d gone straight home after he got off work, expecting an obnoxious and over exaggerated moan in his ear and a sloppy kiss on his cheek the moment he stepped through the door. But when he realized that Baekhyun wasn’t even there yet, he wasn’t concerned, just confused. 

It wasn’t the first time Baekhyun didn’t get home before Chanyeol but at least he had always called him ahead of time to let Chanyeol know. This time he hadn’t so much as texted him. 

By the time eight o’clock rolled along, and Chanyeol was still alone in his home, he was beyond concerned- he was terrified. Baekhyun should have gotten off work about five hours ago and he wasn’t home, nor had he contacted him. Chanyeol sent numerous unanswered texts and calls, and even went back to Baekhyun’s place to make sure he wasn’t there instead.

At this point it should be time to call the police, Chanyeol thought as he made his way back to his own house. It was much larger than Baekhyun’s, having more space and style since it was in a community that had a certain image to uphold. Being a well known lawyer with a good public image had that kind of perk, and he knew not to take advantage of it. 

Chanyeol sighed as he parked in his driveway. He trudged dejectedly through the front door and sank into the nearest couch, holding his phone with Baekhyun’s contact open. 

Maybe he should call one of Baekhyun’s friends. Maybe he’s with someone and forgot to tell Chanyeol. It’s happened before but only once, but it hadn’t given him nearly as much heartache-

The sound of a vehicle pulling into the driveway traveled faintly into his ears. His head immediately shot up and he threw his phone on the seat next to him, racing to his feet. He could hear car doors being slammed closed as he hurried to open the front door. 

The moment he recognized Baekhyun’s face he did nothing to stop himself from practically throwing his arms around the smaller man’s waist, burying his face in his neck. He heard his boyfriend let out a  _ totally  _ manly sound as he was nearly squeezed to death but Chanyeol paid no mind.

“Hello to you, too, babe.” Baekhyun laughed, returning the embrace. Chanyeol instantly scowled and pulled back when Baekhyun tried to lean in for a kiss. 

“Where the hell have you been?” He practically shouted, looking over his boyfriend’s face for any sign of displacement. The only thing he could spot was the faint traces of worry lines between Baekhyun’s eyebrows. Said man smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Well,” he drawled. “I kinda got caught up in something-”

The sound of another one of the car doors being slammed shut quickly caught Chanyeol’ attention. He looked over Baekhyun’s shoulder, all but gawking at the tiny little child shrugging on her backpack and tucking her hair behind her ears. He offered a small smile when she looked at him and the shy wave he got in return made his heart warm.

The hell? It was just a simple wave, how can something like that be so adorable?

Chanyeol took Baekhyun’s hands and turned them so that they were both facing away from the little girl. He looked down at him, “Who is that? Is she one of your students?” He whispered, recognizing the school uniform the child was wearing. “Why is she here?”

Baekhyun sighed and moved away, moving towards the girl. He placed a gentle hand on her head and smiled at his boyfriend shamelessly. “This lovely lady here is Yuk Eunji- I’m her foster dad starting forty-five minutes ago!”

The look on Chanyeol’s face would have sent Baekhyun into a fit of laughter had they been under any other circumstance. Sighing, he took Eunji’s hand slowly, as to make sure he didn’t accidentally frighten her with sudden movements, and motioned for Chanyeol to go back inside the house. They moved quietly into the living room, Baekhyun watching the 9-year-old as she looked around in wonder. 

He remembered then that Chanyeol’s house had a few extra unused rooms while his own only had one. It wasn’t too big but neither was Eunji so it’d have to do for now. 

The three of them sat down in the living room, Baek and Eunji on one couch while Chanyeol on another across from them. It was silent for a few seconds. The only noise came from the clock sitting on the wall next to the entryway to the kitchen. The silence slowly turned awkward, and Eunji’s fidgeting grew slightly erratic. 

“So,” Baekhyun cleared his throat when he noticed. He cast a concerned look her way but she just smiled in response. “Starting today, I’ll be caring and providing for Eunji, not only has her teacher but as her current legal guardian.” He stared straight into Chanyeol’s eyes, challenging. “She will be staying with me until either she or CPS says otherwise.”

Chanyeol opened his mouth to say something but one look at the little girl playing with the strings of her sleeves stopped him. He took a second to reconsider what he’d say before opening his mouth again, smiling. “Okay, well, are you hungry? I have leftover kimchi in the fridge.”

Eunji’s eyes widened when she realized she was the one being addressed. “Oh um. . . sure.” She got up when Chanyeol stood and followed him to the kitchen. Baekhyun just watched from where he sat as his lover prepared and served the food, making some small talk that was small enough to keep a child interested. When Eunji was seated and eating at the table he left and came back to sit with Baekhyun. Baekhyun didn’t expect that frown that suddenly marred his face. 

“What-”

“Are you sure about this?” Chanyeol interrupted him. He took his hand and intertwined their fingers, pressing their promise rings together. When Baekhyun raised an eyebrow he continued. “I know you said you wanted to be a foster parent- I signed up with you. But so soon? And with one of your students nonetheless. You didn’t even talk to me before signing for her. And it’s obvious you hadn’t even thought about it before today. This seems like a rash decision and I don’t want you to regret it.”

If Baekhyun had no clue about how deep Chanyeol’s love for him ran he would have immediately gotten angry and defensive, offended. But instead he smiled up at him sadly. “I agree, this was sort of a rash decision. I didn’t take too much time to think about it. . . But I definitely do not regret it. Nope.”

“What happened?”

Baekhyun glanced at the dining room. Eunji was about half way through her food but she was playing with it, moving it around listlessly with her fork. He pursed his lips.

"Eunji, honey?"

Said girl looked up from her plate, slightly startled. "Are you finished?"

She shook her head and smiled. Baekhyun could tell from where he was sitting that it didn't reach her eyes. "N-no not yet, sorry."

Baekhyun turned to look pointedly at Chanyeol, who looked slightly unsettled. This could be a problem.

"Sweetheart, if you're full or don't want to eat it all, it's completely fine. We can just go ahead and get you to bed." Chanyeol chimed in. Baekhyun hid his mild surprise with a smile. From the dining area Eunji looked down at her plate of food again. She fell quiet for a few seconds and then she nodded, hopping down from her seat fluidly. There was a nervous twitch in her step that both men noticed but didn't mention until they'd helped her settle into one of the guest rooms and met up in Chanyeol's bedroom.

"Is that it? She was being neglected." It was more of a statement than a question.

Baekhyun sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed with a heavy thump. Chanyeol immediately sat at his side and moved so that they were leaning on each other the moment he noticed his stress. 

"It's not just that, Yeol. She was being  _ abused.  _ Full-on severe physical abuse. . . and I'm almost certain there was emotional abuse, too." The smaller man said, just above a whisper. He was staring straight ahead but held onto his lover like a lifeline. "You should have  _ seen _ how scared she was when her mother-  _ that bitch _ \- showed up at the school. And the scars! That poor excuse of a human beat Eunji with a fucking electric cord for God's sake! And it wasn't the first time"

Chanyeol's hold on him tightened when he all but sobbed out the last part. He couldn't help but share his boyfriend's anger. There was no doubt he would have done the same thing has he discovered what this poor girl had gone through. Obviously Eunji's mother is well on her way to jail but Chanyeol still wanted to deal  _ some  _ damage. Female or not, that bitch deserved a good punch for what she'd done.

"I get it now, babe. It's okay." He said soothingly, pressing a kiss into Baekhyun's hair. "I'm sorry for doubting you without even trying to understand. If you want, Eunji can stay here when you can't be home to take care of her. She's always welcome."

It was silent for a few moments before Baekhyun turned and buried his face into Chanyeol's chest, inhaling deeply. "I love you." He murmured.

Chanyeol smiled, carding his fingers through the back of his hair while pulling him closer. 

"I love you more."

"Bitch? No you don't." The smaller scowled.

"But I do."

"If you say so, love."

Chanyeol just chuckled and caressed Baekhyun's cheeks, pulling his head up so that their lips could meet in a sweet, tender kiss that left both of them warm, but not in a sexual way.

Sleep that night didn't come as easily as usual. Not with today's events replaying in Baekhyun's head. But with the soft thumping of his lover's heart under his ear and large warm arms wrapped comfortably around her waist, his dreams were as sweet as candy when it did.

\------///------

“She still hasn’t said anything Baekhyun.”

Said man huffed and rolled his eyes, covering up his concern with a deep scowl. He glanced at the living room, where Eunji sat in front of the coffee table watching the first cartoon that popped up on the TV. 

She’d woken up earlier than them this morning. She refused to tell how long she was up but Baekhyun could guess that it was for at least a good half hour. After he and Chanyeol had gotten out of bed and brushed their teeth, breakfast was made and served and the morning was going smoothly. Eunji didn’t say much but answered when the two adults tried making conversation, and she smiled at Chanyeol’s lame jokes. 

It was all going relatively well- until Chanyeol and Baekhyun kissed. 

They were just joking while washing the dishes, and at some point while they were lost in their own little world their lips met, moving together in that familiar way that still felt like their first every time. They probably would’ve gotten a little too far if it weren’t for the stifled gasp that came from the entryway.

The two ripped away from each other as if caught in a scandal- and they might as well have been with the way the tiny girl was staring at them. Her eyes were wide, mouth handing slightly ajar, and the plate in her hands would’ve crashed to the floor if it weren’t for Chanyeol’s quick reflexes. 

Baekhyun reached out to her cautiously after exchanging glances with him. “H-hey, are you okay?”

He didn’t even try to hide the nervousness in his voice. His eyes searched Eunji’s, trying to figure out what she was thinking. He didn’t find much but thankfully what he didn’t find was disgust. But what he could find was shock and. . . fear?

“Eunji,” Chanyeol offered. He rinsed off the soap that was on his hands while Baekhyun slowly took her hand. The little girl stared for a few moments more. And then gently took her hands from Baekhyun’s grasp and walked away without a single word.

Anyway, that was three hours ago. After that she’d gone to sit in the living room, getting started on the few worksheets she’d been given as homework. When she finished in an hour she opted to just watch TV. The entire time Baekhyun sat at the dinner table working on his lesson plans and other teacher stuff while Chanyeol took care of a few emails on his phone. 

After a while he’d moved to sit next to Baekhyun and started whispering and glancing childishly at the living room. At that point enough was enough.

Baekhyun stood from his seat, walking over to plop down on the couch nearest to where Eunji sat crisscrossed on the floor. She didn’t even seem to notice his presence for a while. That is, until he took the remote and muted to TV. 

She instantly frowned at him, looking offended. 

Baekhyun just smiled sadly, “Eunji it’s time to talk, love.”


	3. Chapter 3

The silence was almost suffocating.

Baekhyun had planned to delve right into- ask for straight answers to all the questions racing through his mind. But the near frightened look worn by the child in front of him stopped him immediately. 

Not knowing whether the fear was misplaced because of past experiences or she was just genuinely scared of him, broke his heart. This was not the little girl he knew, Baekhyun thought sadly. The Eunji he knew always wore one of the brightest smiles and laughed at the smallest of things. 

_ What a piece of crap mother to ruin such a wonderful little girl. _

Baekhyun sighed and patted the spot on the couch next to him, gesturing for Eunji to come here. She did so, albeit hesitantly, and he quickly noticed how tense she was next to him. 

He could see from the corner of his eye that Chanyeol still sat at the table, watching. 

“Now, Eunji,” Baekhyun started, voice as soft as he could muster. Which was difficult with the whirlpool of emotions splashing violently through him. “What’s on your mind? Do you not like it when me and Chanyeol kiss?”

“N-No!” Eunji all but shouted. She looked frantic when she noticed Baekhyun’s dismay. “I-I um, I mean I don’t. . . not like it.”

It sounded more like a question but Baekhyun knew what she meant. He gave a small smile and took her hand. “Then what happened in the kitchen this morning?”

“Oh, um,” Eunji looked down, pressing her lips together but Baekhyun just squeezed her hand in encouragement. “She s-said that it’s bad to like people whose the same gender as you. She said you’ll die if you do.”

Baekhyun frowned deeply. “Who?”

“Momma.”

They could both hear a deep rumble coming from Chanyeol across the room but ignored him. Eunji took a deep breath. “I, um, really liked this girl in my math class. Momma found out after reading my diary. She wasn’t very happy. She h-hit me and locked me in my room and didn’t give me food for a long time until I said I-I didn’t like any girl.”

Baekhyun took a second to faintly remember that one time Eunji was absent from class for almost an entire week. At the time he had assumed she was just really sick, but to know that she was being starved and neglected? It made him nauseous.

“Oh, sweetheart. . .” He pulled her closer without another thought, wrapping his arms around her tiny form in a comforting hug. Who he was really comforting, he didn’t know. But he knew that they both needed it at least a little bit. His embrace only tightened when he started feeling his shirt grow damp, her little shoulders trembling. 

“I. . . I don’t know why momma doesn’t love me.” He could hear her muffled whimpers. “She always yells at me and hits me, a-and she never likes my drawings.”

Baekhyun could feel his own eyes start burning, throat thick with emotion. He could barely swallow so he could mutter, “You’re drawings are the best.”

Instead of a smile like he expected to get, Eunji let out a heart-wrenching sob, one of her fists clamped down tightly on his shirt. He could faintly hear Chanyeol get up from his seat and make his way over to where they were. When he looked up at him, tears finally traveling down his cheeks, his boyfriend quickly kneeled down next to where they sat and wrapped his large arms around the both of them, pressing a small kiss to Baekhyun’s forehead.

They stayed there for what felt like hours, both men waiting until Eunji calmed down until Baekhyun spoke again. 

“What she did, what she told you, none of it was okay, do you understand?” He insisted. It almost seemed natural when he raised a hand to gently move Eunji’s hair out of her face, followed by Chanyeol delicately wiping the tears from under her eyes. He continued when she nodded her head timidly. “You don’t. . . you don’t have to refer to her as your mother anymore, okay? That’s not how mothers are supposed to treat their daughters, especially not awesome ones like you.”

The tiny giggle he got in return made his chest lighten and he smiled. “Unless, of course, you want to. Then that’s totally fine. Just know that she can’t hurt you anymore, not with me and Yeol here taking care of you, okay?”

Eunji didn’t say anything at first. She stared at Baekhyun, her tiny but wide eyes flickering between his as if searching for something. After a few moments it seemed like she found what she was looking for, or maybe it was that she didn’t find it. Because then her face lifted into a bright smile, and she lurched forward to give him another hug. “Okay,” she mumbled. 

If only he had a camera to capture the smile on Baekhyun’s face, Chanyeol thought fondly. 

\------///------

“Eunji, are you ready?” Chanyeol yelled from the front door. He was slipping his shoes onto his feet while Baekhyun shrugged on his jacket next to him, the lanyard for his keys dangling from his mouth. 

“I can’t find my sock!” Eunji called back from upstairs. Baekhyun chuckled and left to go help her look for it, coming back a few minutes later with the small child falling a step behind him. Chanyeol gave them both a large grin. 

“Are you ready now?” He looked pointedly at Eunji. She giggled and nodded, sitting by the door to put on her shoes. When she finished she stood and moved out the way so Chanyeol could open the front door.

Baekhyun followed them to the car after making sure all the lights were turned off. When he closed and locked the door behind him Chanyeol was already finished making sure Eunji was buckled into the backseat. He all but ran to the passenger seat and stood in front of the door, effectively blocking his boyfriend when he noticed he was moving towards it. Baekhyun smiled sheepishly. “Can you drive?”

Chanyeol stared at him disbelievingly before he sighed. 

“Pretty please?”

“Fine,” Chanyeol muttered. Baekhyun let out a quiet cheer, bouncing on his feet slightly as he climbed into the black SUV. Chanyeol just rolled his eyes with a small smile and got in the car.

When they pulled out the driveway and started down the road, Eunji started talking animatedly about a new rock band she absolutely loves, Rolling Quartz. She rambled on about how cool they were, playing actual live instruments and singing, and how they were all so pretty. Chanyeol kept responding with encouraging comments while Baekhyun silently laughed how obviously gay this little girl already was. 

He couldn’t blame her, though. When she first mentioned the group, Baekhyun had taken out his phone and looked them up. The five girls were definitely a sight to behold and he was almost sure at least one of them would have been his type if he weren’t as straight as a rollercoaster. 

“Mr. Byun do you like rock?” 

Baekhyun looked back at her. “I wouldn’t say I don’t like it but it’s not my favorite. And you can just call me Baekhyun when we’re not at school. 

“Okay, Mr. Baekhyun,” Eunji giggled. 

Baekhyun gave a small laugh and turned back to facing forward in his seat. His hand subconsciously reached out to the side, landing gently on the hand rested on the shift gear. 

The rest of the ride was spent in a nice, peaceful kind of silence, except for the music that played softly in the background. Chanyeol navigated his way through the streets and Baekhyun hummed along with the music while watching the trees go by. Eunji was coloring in a worksheet from the backseat, dead set on coloring inside the lines as best as she could with all the bumps the car ran over.

Baekhyun had hummed through eight songs by the time they’d pulled in front of a small, bright-colored, one-story home. 

The painting was chipped in many places and the bricks underneath were showing. There was a little garden that spread across the front of the house, wilted flowers and bug-infested fruits littering the grass. 

It was obvious that Eunji’s mother had been trying to uphold an. . . image. Trying to seem like a good, caring mother by making her house seem homey.

Baekhyun stared at the small building in distaste. The rest of the homes around it were in similar condition- obviously old and slightly run-down by years of little to no renovation. He turned around to check on Eunji, make sure she was okay.

Either she didn’t notice that the car had stopped or she was just too consumed with her coloring book because she hadn’t even looked up from it. She was completely unbothered, with her little lips pressed together in concentration. He almost didn’t want to bother her, but the look Chanyeol was giving him told him he shouldn’t. 

They’d eventually gotten her attention with soft coaxing murmurs, and when she did finally lift up her head they could both see the exact moment she realized where they were. 

Eunji’s face completely fell. Her already pale skin had paled just a shade further, and the colored pencil between her fingers fell between the seats. She’d even started to tremble.

Chanyeol was quick to reassure her that her mother wasn’t home. It didn’t take long for them to realize that that wasn’t why she was so frightened. Baekhyun was even quicker to make sure she knew they weren’t abandoning her here. 

It’d taken a few, painstakingly-long minutes to convince her, and once they had the next few hours were a blur. 

The three of them left the car together, and when they approached the door they were surprised to see that Seunghee and a few other people were already inside, packing up a few items that hadn’t personally belonged to Eunji’s family. 

Chanyeol and Baekhyun helped her with finding and packing things she needed or really wanted to keep. The first thing she’d gone for was her large stuffed giraffe that was almost twice her size. When questioned, Eunji told them in the most serious voice they’d ever heard from her that this was all she needed, but after some convincing she relented and went to get essentials like her uniforms, photo albums, K-pop albums, toiletries. Neither man said anything about the questionable items she deemed ‘essential’.

It’d taken nearly 3 hours but no one complained. By the time Chanyeol had finished tossing all of Eunji’ stuff in the car, Seunghee was making her final circuit through the house, looking for any last pieces of evidence that could make sure Eunji’s mother would stay locked up for sure. When she finished she just gave Baekhyun a key to the house, ‘in case Eunji later realizes she forgot something’, and wished the said girl the best before taking her leave.

Baekhyun didn’t know what else to do than to pocket the key as they got ready to leave themselves. They hopped back in the car and drove away from the house that they’d hopefully be saying goodbye to for the last time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, uh, the rock group that Eunji mentioned is a REAL group.
> 
> Rolling Quartz is a Korean female rock band that recently debuted with their single 'Blaze'. They're like Dreamcatcher's sisters and they're so talented I promise you won't be disappointed.
> 
> Just putting that out there ;)


End file.
